Improvement in stirrups



UNITED STATES PATENT EEICE.-

ANDREW J. HERRING, OF MAUCH CHUNK, PENNSYLVANIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN STIRRUPS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 145,869, dated December 23, 1873; application iled Y september 15, 1873,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ANDREW J. HER-RING, of Manch Chunk, in the county of Carbon andy State of Pennsylvania, -have invented a new and Improved Stirrup, and I do hereby declare the following to be a full and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification, in which- Figure l is a perspective view of my invention. Fig. 2 is a transverse section of the same; and Fig. 3, a section through line w Fig. 2.

Similar letters of reference in the accompanying drawings vdenote the same parts.

This invention is an improvement on my patent, No. 135,547, dated February 4, 1873, and has for its object to improve the construction of the wooden stirrup in such manner as to secure greater strength and stiffness without materially increasing the weight, and also to provide simple and efficient means for` attaching the stirrup-strap to the halfblocks composing the top of the stirrup. To these ends, my invention consists, first, in the peculiar construction of the wooden piece, the

` same being bent at its outer ends, so that when the half -blocks are put together the grain of the wood in each block will be parallel with that of the other, instead of converging toward the top, as in the original invention. The outer sides of the stirrup, at its upper end, are -thus rendered parallel, and better bearings to the bolt-head and nut, securing the half-blocks together and clamping the hood in place. The center of the stirrup is provided with a re-enforcement, which providesa fiat surface for the bearing of the riders feet, preventing the bottom from bending, and protecting it from wear. My invention consists, secondly, in providing vertical grooves in the half-blocks composing the top of the stirrup for the reception of the stirrupstrap, the latter passing down one side of the blocks, under the same, and up the opposite side, its edges fitting in the grooves in such manner as to hold the strap in place, all of which I will now proceed to describe.

In the drawings, A is the stirrup, worked out of one piece of wood, with the halfblocks B upon each end, which halves bear against each other when the stirrup is bent up, and are held in place by the transverse bolt C and nut D, the latter holding the leather hood E in place, as fully described and shown in my original patent.

In my former patent the half-blocks sloped inward on their outer sides, the grain in each block converging toward the center. I now bend the ends of the wooden piece so that when the blocks are placed together their outer sides are parallel, as shown in Fig. 2, thus providing parallelA bearing-surfaces for the head of the bolt C and thenut D.

At the center of the stirrup is a re-enforccment, a, projecting from the upper side, and of suflicient width to afford a secure bearing for the sole ofthe foot. The reenforcement is of uniform thickness, its edges rising sharply from the piece composing the stirrup, which is doubled in thickness thereby 5 consequently, when the ends of the wooden piece are bent up in forming the stirrup, the stiffness of the re-enforced portion prevents it from bending and keeps it perfectly flat, thus maintaining an even step for the foot, which conduces matcrially to the comfort of the rider during long journeys, and prevents undue wear on the bottom of the stirrup.

In my former patent the-stirrup-strap was connected to the stirrup by a spring-frame; but, for the purpose of simplifying and cheapening the connection, I now provide vertical grooves G in the blocks B, two on each' side of the stirrup, adapted to hold the edges of the strap S, which passes down one side under an interposed rounded block, T, attached to the lower sides of theblocks B, and up the opposite side, as shown.

The strap is thus held in its proper place at all times, is readily inserted and removed, and the arrangement presents a neat and finished appearance.

The bolt C is constructed square for a portion of its length, and its socket is correspondingly shaped, so that the bolt cannot turn or loosen the nut.

The hood is attached to the lower portion of the stirrup by suitable straps or thongs T, as 2. The blocks B, having grooves G, adapted shown. to hold the edges of the stirrup-strap S, sub- I claim as my inventionl l' 1 stantially as described. l. The Wooden stirrup A provi( e( Wit 1 the re-enforeemeut wat its eenzer, and having its ANDRIWV J' HERRING ends bent so tha-t the halfbloeks B formed Witnesses: thereon shall have parallel outer sides, sub- EDWIN V. KYTE, stantially as and for the purpose specified. CEAS. A. OLCOTT. 

